MEMORIAL SAINT IRENAEUS, BISHOP, WEDNESDAY OF THE TWELFTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME, JUNE 28, 2023

BISHOP AND MARTYR (125-202)

DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH

'DOCTOR OF UNITY' BETWEEN EAST AND WEST

MASS READINGS:

Gospel

Mt 7:15-20

"Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing,

but underneath are ravenous wolves."

REFLECTION

There are many false prophets. There are people who calmly spread untrue messages, preach prosperity gospel, or who are inaccurate in doctrine. They can be very appealing and persuasive making us vulnerable to be like them or want what they preach. Beware because they can drag us down to a place that we might not be able to escape. They can affect our relationship with God. To determine the false from the true one is through their fruits.

We can, however, be our own false prophet: convincing ourselves that our life style is okay, missing Mass, gossiping are not that bad, cheating on exams, lying on applications are fine as many do it. We minimize sin in our lives. We rationalize that after all God is so good that He will forgive us. Will people know us by our fruits?

St Irenaeus, Father of the Church, is an example of perseverance in the service of God. He faced difficult moments combatting the heresies and the controversies of the second century in Lyons, France. He was especially concerned with the Gnostics (Greek for knowledge). They claimed that they had access to secret knowledge about Jesus given to only a few disciples. They were unfaithful to the Scriptures. Many Christians were confused and were being told that knowing about God was the only way to be saved. St Irenaeus wrote five books that refuted Gnosticism. He emphasized the four Gospels, taught and preached that Jesus sacrificed Himself for our our salvation. We don't just have knowledge of Him but we have faith in Him and we live our faith by serving God. (1)

He provided a coherent rationale for a Christian Bible and he was first to offer a comprehensive account of the belief in God's redemption. (1)

He explained how Mary was the "New Eve." He said that the knots created by the disobedience of the virgin Eve have been untied by the obedience of the virgin Mary. This is the basis of the iconography of the image of "Maria Knotenloserin" which is popularly know as "Mary, the Undoer of Knots." (2)

St Irenaeus was martyred for his faith in 202. He recently was made a Doctor of the Church by Pope Francis in 2020.

We pray that we will find and follow the truth through our beloved priests, bishops and Pope. We thank God for the many saints who dealt with heretics for the correct doctrines, who sacrificed their lives for God and the Catholic Church.

God Bless You

(1) A Saint A Day by Meredith Hinds

(2) MaryUndoerofKnots.com